Crush
by SpiritPrincess101
Summary: The million dollar question: is it just a crush? A normal day, an abnormal hair style. Simple things lead to a whole domino series of like, love, and a young couple. RyomaxSakuno. Please read and review!
1. I: Realizations

Hey all! Hime-chan here!

Sorry for such a long time of not contacting you guys! I was kinda out of it for a bit. But I'm back! And with a whole string of stories to come! Thanks for all and any support by just reading my stories! (By the way, please check out my other story Eternal Snow if you have seen the anime/manga Full Moon wo Sagashite. It's one of the chain lyric fics that I'm beginning. The prologue's up, so please review or read! And if you haven't seen Full Moon wo Sagashite, you're totally missing out! It's so cute, so go get it!)

So as you all know, none of the characters belong to me, but just because I'm supposed to, let's get this over with:

Disclaimer: no characters from Prince of Tennis belong to me (although I'd be a happy fan if they did).

Please read and review!

Note: Everything is as the anime is in the beginning. Ryoma Sakuno FOREVVAAAA!

THANKS!

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Chapter 1:

Crush

On a normal school day at Seigaku Gakuen:

"Senpaiii! Fight-o!"

"Ryoma-sama, go go go!"

It was once again time for the intraschool ranking tournaments, and as usual, each of the regulars was completely powning his opponents. (A/N: did I spell that right? 0_o)

"Game and match. 6-0. Echizen Ryoma." A hoard of girls nearby screamed in approval.

"Match. Oishi." "Hey, good work."

"6-0. Inui." (A/N: I'm pretty sure that guy just knocked his opponent out first thru some weirdo Inui Deluxe Special Excellento Juice beforehand. -_-)

"Game set and match. 6-0. Kikumaru Eiji." "Hoi hoi!"

"6-2. Fuji." (A/N: I bet Fuji let up a little on his opponent. 6-2? Unforgivable! ^_^ jk of course.)

"6-3. Momoshiro-Kaidoh pair." "Yahoo!" "Fssshhhh…."

"6-4. Kawamura." "BURNING!" (A/N: LOLLLLLL…)

And finally, "Game and match. Tezuka." "Do not let your guard down." (A/N: Honestly, does this one ever not say that line?)

Ryoma walked over to the net and held out his hand. "Nice job, Arai-senpai."

The elder male grunted and shook his hand with begrudging respect. After the handshake, the two males walked opposite ways.

"Wow! Another fantastic match, Ryoma-kun!" the freshman trio cried out in unison.

Ryoma nodded at them, acknowledging their praise. And then on the other side of the court fence, of course were…

"AAHH! Ryoma-sama, you were wonderful!" Tomoka cried out, swooning in front of the young prince.

Ryoma replied that he heard her by slightly tilting his head up and down one degree. The last thing he expected, however, was exactly what he got.

"Ah! Ryoma-sama acknowledged me!" Tomoka subsequently proceeded to pass out in front of the prince's feet.

Ryoma subtly rolled his eyes and stepped over the fanatic fangirl-aka-Sakuno's-friend-aka-Tomoka, not purposely trying to hurt his "number one fan," but... _Does this girl never let up?_ He thought.

Another girl nearby noticed this slight facial movement and giggled. The prince heard, and turned, not having felt her presence beforehand.

Sakuno smiled and greeted Ryoma. "Congratulation, Ryoma-kun. That was a good match."

Ryoma nodded to thank her. "Thanks, Ryuuzaki." He then stopped and stared at her, puzzled. _Is there something different about her today? _He scanned over her appearance.

Ding-ding-ding! Shock rolled over Ryoma.

Sakuno had let her hair down today! (A/N: GASP! ^_^)

Ryoma continued to stare, completely and obviously unaware of the fact that said person of attention was becoming very confused by his unusual attentiveness.

"Hey…Ryoma-kun?" Sakuno waved a hand in front of his face. "Doushitano? What's wrong?"

Ryoma jolted. "Eh? Ah…sorry. Little distracted there."

Sakuno's POV

…Ryoma-kun's weird today. He usually doesn't pay that much attention to me, even if we say hi to each other in the hallway during break or in the cafeteria during lunch. So what's up with this?

I waved a hand in front of his eyes to wake him out of his zone. "Hey…Ryoma-kun? What's wrong?"

To my amusement, he jumped, startled. Seems like he had been in deep thought about something.

"Something wrong?" I asked in curiosity. It's rare for the prince to become so distracted when he's right next to a tennis court. The guy's nuts for tennis, I swear. Although that's a good point of his; he's so cool when he plays in matches, especially when he's enjoying some good competition like with Shinji from Fudomine.

Ryoma quickly shook his head no. "Eh? Ah…sorry. Little distracted there. Nothing wrong, per say….Ryuuzaki, is this the first time your hair's been down?"

Huh? I took out my compact mirror in my pocket and popped it open to check my appearance. Oh! That's right, I forgot my pigtails this morning…

"AHHHH! Oh my gosh I forgot to comb my hair! EEEK!" I shrieked. "It must be all messy now; I bet it looks like a haystack. Oh no…" I panicked. "This was the first time this year that this had happened! And all because of stupid obaa-chan…" I was on the verge of ranting but Ryoma tapped me on the shoulder.

"Hey, Ryuuzaki."

I turned to look at him.

"Don't worry. It looks good," he told me.

I was stunned. What just happened? The prince…directly complimented me? Wait…WHAT? I couldn't help but stare in silence back at Ryoma. This had to be a dream, right?

Ryoma in turn looked right back at me, straight in the eyes. "What?" he asked.

"…R-r-really?" I stuttered. Oh jeezus. I thought I had gotten rid of my speaking handicaps in second year.

Ryoma POV

Ok, somebody had to calm this girl down. She looked like she was going to have a panic attack…Ah wait I take that back. She's already having one.

"Oi, Ryuuzaki." I tapped her on the shoulder and when she turned around, "Don't worry. It looks good." I told her.

It was a way of comforting her, but seriously, she was honestly quite pretty when she let her hair down like that. I really don't get why girls think pigtails are so "in" nowadays; they seem annoying to me.

I turned my attention back to Ryuuzaki. She was looking at me with that goldfish look, you know, the open mouth and big eyes thing? I didn't really get what had caught her off guard so much.

"What? Um…Ryuuzaki?" it was my turn to wave my hand in front of her face. "Oi, you ok there?"

Ryuuzaki nodded. "R-r-really?" she stuttered. I thought that was kinda cute.

Whoa whoa whoa! Wait, what did I just think? Cute? Ok, Echizen Ryoma has not ever thought of girls as cute; they're too clingy. Then it hit me; I had thought of her as pretty just moments before. All rightey, what is going on here? I asked myself.

But for the moment, I was still talking to Ryuuzaki. "Yeah," I replied nonchalantly.

She stood stock still for a moment, then out of the blue…

I felt something heavy land on me and I almost fell backwards onto the ground, but just in time kept my balance and instinctively grabbed onto the attacker, who happened to be…

Ryuuzaki cried happily, "If Ryoma-kun says so, I'll wear my hair down everyday!"

I realized that this heavy object was Ryuuzaki! Actually, as a person, she's quite light…and oddly enough, her hair smells really good.

I smacked myself mentally. What am I thinking?

All of a sudden, Ryuuzaki's oddly comforting weight was lifted, or more like dragged, off of me.

"Sakuno! What do you think you're doing?" I heard a screechy, unfortunately familiar voice shriek. I rubbed my temples. Guess she woke up.

"Ah! Tomo-chan. Oh—n-n-nothing!" Ryuuzaki was trying to deny everything.

Guess I better run before Ryuuzaki's friend launches herself onto me.

"Hey, Sakuno, I gotta run. So I'll see you around!" I called while running away.

"OK!" she shouted back, while multitasking and futilely trying to explain to her nutty buddy what just happened.

Then, as I rounded the corner to the boys' locker room and slowed to a jog, something hit me, once again, for what seemed like the millionth time today. I just hugged Ryuuzaki! Just thinking about it, some weird heat spread across my cheeks. I touched my face…what's this? I thought, puzzled.

Sakuno POV

I struggled with Tomo-chan while watching Ryoma-kun's figure jogging away.

Then something hit me. "OH MY GOD HE CALLED ME BY MY FIRST NAME!"

* * *

So, how do you guys like it? It's just the first chapter, so there'll be more to come, and I hope all you lovely readers can support me thru it! I've tried my best on stories before, but I guess no one really liked it because no one reviewed much (sad face).

Anyways, it's a new start to a new year! Please review now that you're done reading, and I thank all of you out there for coming thus far with me! Arigatou! Happy Belated New Year's to everyone as well! Go 2011!

~Hime-chan


	2. II: Fever

HI! HIME-CHAN HERE!

Thank you for all the readers last time!

Although I was slightly disappointed by the slight lack of reviews, it's much better than my previous stories, so I hope you can continue to support me! THANK YOU FOR HELPING ME COME THIS FAR!

In reality, any sign of having read my story is appreciated: favoriting, alerts, reviews, PMs, etc.

Just something so I don't have to panic that no one is reading my story and then scurry over to my story traffic page before I see that actually a decent number are reading, but no one's responding. -_-

OK, I'm done complaining. I'm such a whiny person, aren't I? ^_^ In any case, thank you so much for your support!

Love you all, and please enjoy this next chapter of Crush! (Btw, I uploaded a different story for Gakuen Alice a couple weeks ago. Please head to my profile if you have seen the anime and are interested! ILY!)

Disclaimer: none of the characters of Prince of Tennis are my possessions. They are owned by Takeshi Konomi-sensei and his producing company.

This chapter is dedicated to MadBlossomingPrincess, who I am very grateful to for giving me a full review and bonuses of story alert and favoriting. Thank you so much, dear! ^_^ Hope you enjoy Ryoma's POV as well! (He might be a little OOC, as is Tezuka)

NOW, LET'S GO!

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Crush—

Chapter 2:

Ryoma POV

Ryoma headed into the locker room, still puzzled from the spread of heat across his cheeks just moments before. _I think I'm getting sick from this stupid heat_…

"Hoi hoi chibi!" He heard a familiar, happy voice call.

"Yo, Eiji-senpai." The older regular looked him up and down.

"Hey what's up? You don't look so good. You have a fever or something?" Eiji asked worriedly.

"Maybe I'm coming down with something…But I felt perfectly fine before…" his statement faded as he was beginning to realize exactly what he was suffering from.

"Yes?" Eiji prodded him on innocently; curious about what was wrong with his little kouhai.

"Er, well…" the young prince stammered. He pulled his trademark cap downwards towards his face, reluctant to share what had occurred just now. "It's nothing big really, just Sakuno—"

"Oh ho ho?" another male popped up and joined the conversation. "Seems like something's amiss, Echizen." Fuji had on his characteristic smile, but Echizen shuddered when he saw his face. There was definitely something sinister about this Angel from Hell.

And yet another regular spoke up. "Haha, I can get good data from this." Inui muttered happily to himself, pen ready, notebook open, just waiting to hear something juicy from Echizen.

"Oi, Fuji, Inui. Cut it out! Echizen'll get embarrassed." Kawamura and Oishi nudged Fuji and Inui respectively in the ribs to get them to shut up.

Ryoma feebly attempted to thank his two more sensible senpais, but was interrupted by the noisy entrance of two more comrades.

"Heh? Echizen, did you get yourself a girlfriend?" Momoshiro Takeshi screamed into his kouhai's vicinity. Ryoma clapped his hands over his poor ears to temporarily prevent himself from going deaf.

"Don't ask people stuff like that, stupid peach-head!" Kaidoh hissed to Momo.

"What was that, you dumb snake?"

"Fssshhhh…"

"Do that one more time!"

"Fssh. You want a piece of me?"

"Bring it!" "Come and get it then!" etc etc etc. (Not a day goes without their fighting, huh…)

_Perfect_. Ryoma thought. Taking advantage of the commotion, he attempted to slink out of the locker room to freedom in his class with Sakuno, but was blocked by the entrance of the last and by far most intimidating member of the regular team.

Who is it? Yup, you guessed it!

Just as Echizen was about to tiptoe out the door to freedom, in walks Tezuka Kunimitsu, 3rd year, straight A student, a favorite of the teachers, a hottie target for the girls, and known for being wise in all aspects of life.

Also known as the captain of the Seigaku tennis team.

"Kaidoh! Momo! Cut that out! Everybody except Echizen, 50 laps around the courts. Get going!" Tezuka barked out his usual punishment for the regulars.

Everyone froze, except Fuji, who grinned slyly, knowing exactly what Tezuka's purpose was.

Unfortunately, since everyone froze, no one was smart enough to start running. Tezuka narrowed his eyes. "Ok, never mind."

Everyone let out a relieved breath, thinking he was going to be nice today…

"100 laps!"

"WHAT?"

"You heard me! And if you don't…Inui, prepare your drinks! Get out, NOW!" Tezuka was starting to get irritated at his team's apparent inability to hear instructions clearly.

1, 2, 3 silent seconds passed, and then a scrambling group of 7 tennis regulars dashed out the doors in fear of Inui's Special Deluxe Excellent something or another, with a huge dust-cloud following them. Tezuka turned to Ryoma.

"Echizen, is it true?" Ryoma's respected buchou asked. All right, obviously this guy listened in on the conversation beforehand. But it saves time, and also definitely makes things unbelievably awkward for our little prince here.

"…No." Ryoma denied after a moment's pause.

Tezuka grinned for .0000001 seconds, but hid it just as quickly as it had come. "Liar."

Ryoma looked up in shock. "How'd you know?"

The 3rd year sighed. "See? That's how. It's written all over your face, Echizen. You let your guard down too early."

Ryoma collapsed against the locker room wall and slid down onto the bench, slipping his head into his hands in defeat and frustration. He knew he could tell Tezuka without the chances of it reaching other ears; the guy has no tendencies to gossip and has a moral code made up of 100% honor.

But it's so confusing and embarrassing…then again, he was in need for some serious consultation help here.

Looking up at his buchou, Ryoma saw zero smiles and one serious face waiting patiently to hear him out.

He sighed in defeat again, and began. "Well, I felt perfectly fine this morning, but then during the matches today…"

"And you see, now I'm really not sure. I think I'm coming down with something." Ryoma ended.

Tezuka looked at him blankly for a second, digesting his words, and then chuckled.

Ryoma froze. _Buchou, laughing? Hold on a minute! Are the pigs flying yet?_ He looked out the window to see if he could find the pink oinkers in the sky. But no winged pigs. Just Tezuka, laughing his heart out now at Ryoma's ignorance.

"Oi, Buchou. What's so funny?" the young prince was starting to get annoyed now.

Tezuka immediately stopped laughing, adjusting his glasses, and clearing his throat, he asked incredulously, "You really don't know what's wrong?"

Ryoma narrowed his eyes into slits, frustrated that he knew nothing and had to repeat himself. "Like I said, I'm coming down with something!"

Tezuka frowned. "You know that's not the truth."

Ryoma averted his eyes and pulled his cap further down his face to cover his almost imminent blush. "Of course it's the truth. What else could it be?" He denied.

_Stupid fever! Go away, shoo! _Ryoma willed the warmth away from his burning cheeks.

At first, Tezuka didn't know what to do. He thought about how to approach the young prince for a while, and then grinned mischievously. "Ryuuzaki Sakuno…chan, huh…"

Ryoma's neck snapped upwards in a flash; his eyes were wide at Tezuka's familiar address of Sakuno. His cheeks aflame, a scarlet red, he asked as nonchalantly as he could, "What about her?" He knew this had something to do with Sakuno, (OBVIOUSLY) but…

_Asides the fact that she's making you blush like a tomato? _Tezuka chuckled inwardly. _Nothing much_.

"What?" Ryoma asked again, suspiciously.

Tezuka smirked. "Echizen, you've got a crush on that girl."

* * *

Mini Translation for non-Japanese people:

Buchou = captain

Chibi = literally, small; connotation: little one

Senpai = school upperclassman

Kouhai = school lowerclassman

"-chan" = very familiar way of addressing young girls; indicates intimacy to the point of boyfriend or extremely close female friend

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LOL! How'd you like Chapter 2? It's kind of worse than chapter 1 in my opinion.

Please leave a review, or some sign that you've read my story; I'd REALLY REALLY REALLLLYYYYY appreciate it! ^_^

If there's a twist to the story that you want, please comment. I'll try to fill in requests through reviews and PMs, just contact me thru this account or my email: .

I love you all! And thank you so much to all the reviewers as well! Yes MadBlossomingPrincess, especially you!

THANKS TO ALL OF YOU! I'LL UPDATE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!

LOVE YOU ALL!

~Hime-chan, over and out.


	3. III: For the First Time

HEY Y'ALL! Hime-chan, here again with another update!

Again, I'd like to shout out a huge thank you to EVERYONE who read this time, and especial thanks to "aniel" and dear MadBlossomingPrincess for reviewing! Thank you so much, both of you!

So, seems like everyone likes how the story is going so far, as I haven't gotten any flames yet. (Lol, it's not like I'm aiming for flames) But, seriously, if any of you want me to twist the plot, review or PM me! I hope to create a story that you and I can enjoy together. Ok? ^_^ Yoroshiku, I'm counting on you guys!

So here comes Chapter 3! Please read and review (or story alert, fav, etc)

Disclaimer: none of the Prince of Tennis characters or Crush (the song) belongs to me. They belong to Takeshi Konomi-sensei and David Archuleta and his producing company, respectively.

* * *

Crush:  
Chapter 3: (**BOLD** = song lyrics)

Sakuno POV (Continuing off from chapter 1)

"OH MY GOD HE CALLED ME BY MY FIRST NAME!" I screamed in realization and shock.

Tomoka, who was in the middle of attacking me, froze and looked me straight in the eyes. "What did you say? Sakuno? Sakuno?" She un-froze from her shock and started shaking me back in forth, trying to joggle an answer from me.

"Tomo-chan! Stop it! Oi!" Tomoka finally calmed down after shaking me by the shoulders for about 5 minutes nonstop. Honestly, I know that she supports Ryoma-kun a lot, but honestly.

"Hah…" I caught my breath. "…He called me by my first name."

**-Flashback-**

Hey Sakuno I gotta go. I'll see you around! _Ryoma-kun called back to me as he ran away, probably in fear of Tomoka, who had magically revived from her swooning state. _

_I nodded back while Tomo-chan was still trying to throttle me dead_.

**-Flashback end- **

Tomo-chan spoke tentatively. "Oi, Sakuno?"

I started from my dreamy stupor. "Ah, yeah?"

Tomo-chan looked at me funny. "Sakuno, you're acting weird."

"Well, he called me by my first name. I don't think I've ever heard him call me that."

Tomo-chan snorted. "Forget your first name. I bet he's never called any girl in the world by her first name besides you, at this point, anyways."

I was surprised by her bitterness and annoyance at Ryoma-kun. "Tomo-chan, don't you like Ryoma-kun?"

She sighed and replied, "Yes I do. But to be honest, he's not really my type. It's like he's in a world that I'll never be able to reach. I think he's better paired with you."

I was shocked. She was acting so mature. Sure, we're growing into adults at this point, but to hear this from Tomoka, who's admired Ryoma ever since first year of middle school…

Tomoka began walking past me, patting me on the shoulder as she passed by me. "Good luck, Sakuno."

I thanked her, "Arigatou, Tomo-chan," and also began walking, except in the opposite direction, towards class. (Tomo-chan was heading towards the library; seems like she had some research to do for class.)

* * *

Tomoka POV

Sakuno thanked me and I heard her footsteps fading as she walked farther away.

I stopped in my tracks and turned back. "You'll need it," I whispered.

* * *

Regular POV

Sakuno pranced along happily towards the building where classes were held; joyful at the implication that Ryoma might be starting to like her back. She was glad that the past 2 years of one-sided love might not be going to waste.

But only God knew what was in store for the young girl.

* * *

Ryoma POV

I stared shocked at Tezuka-buchou for a moment, then returned to my usual blank face. "You're wrong." I said nonchalantly. "There's no way I'd like that Wobbly Hips."

Buchou sighed and ruffled his hair in frustration. "That's why I said, it's so clear by the way you're acting."

I cocked an eyebrow at him. "My actions?"

Buchou looked straight back at me. "Ok, answer me yes or no for the following questions."

I said reluctantly, "Fine."

Buchou began. "Does her face pop up in your face often?"

"…Yes."

"Do you talk often? Or rather, are you happy talking to her?"

"…Maybe."

"It's a yes or no, Echizen."

"Fine. Yes."

"Do you feel like the air's warmer when you're around her?"

"HOW'D YOU KNOW THAT?"

"Hah." Tezuka smirked. "Told you; you like her."

I gaped at him. "I…like…Sakuno?"

It was Buchou's turn to cock an eyebrow at me. "Oh? You're already on a first name basis?"

I flushed in embarrassment. "What? We're the same age anyways. It's natural."

Buchou said, "Asides the fact that you don't call _any_ girls by their first name…except Sakuno-san. Actually, on a side note, do you even know most of your grade's girls' _last_ names?" He added incredulously.

I shot back. "Of course!"

Tezuka-buchou gave me a blank stare. "Good."

We stayed like that for a couple minutes, just staring at each other. "Echizen…"

I hesitantly replied, "Yes, buchou?"

"Go run your laps."

"WHAT?"

"You can just run 10 laps. My only requirement is that you think about what I've said."

"…All right. Fine." (A/N: See, it's around this point that Ryoma would usually say "ウィス", his trademark "wiss," or yup)

(**While running laps…**)

I thought about my conversation with the captain. He got everything right on the bull's eye, and I couldn't help but wonder, could I possibly like Ryuuzaki?

_No, not Ryuuzaki anymore. Sakuno. I will call her Sakuno from now on_.

"Ugh!" I shook my head in frustration, "What's up with me today?" I cried out.

"HOIIIII OCHIBI!" I heard a delighted Eiji-senpai call out to me from behind.

"Oh great." I muttered. I really didn't need the senpai-tachi to bug me again.

I shot off, leaving the senpai in the dust to finish the rest of their laps.

* * *

"Agh…" I collapsed on my bed, exhausted. "Senpai-tachi are really fast."

I caught my breath in a bit, tired from running away from my teammates. Honestly, would they just let up for a bit? My head's all fuzzy now. I curled up in the sheets, attempting to end the confusion by burying myself in the realm of sleep.

**Knock knock**

My old man popped his head into my room right as I was about to fall asleep. "Oi, Ryoma."

I growled at him. Just when I was about to fall asleep! "What, oyaji? I was going to sleep you know!"

He chuckled, and chucked something at me. I caught it just barely by my sleepy reflexes. "Here's the phone for you, boy. Seems like a girl…Sakuno, was it?" He hummed a little song as he shut the door. "So young…" I heard him mumble happily as he walked back down the stairs.

I shot a glare at him and stuck my tongue out at the closed door. "Stupid old man." I was going to slam the phone down onto my nightstand, but then realized Sakuno was on the line.

"Ah, Ryuuzaki?" I mumbled sleepily into the phone. Then I mentally slapped myself; it's Sakuno, not Ryuuzaki!

"Ryoma-kun? You okay?" I could just imagine her worrying over me; she really does need to learn to think for herself sometimes.

"Yeah, just kinda sleepy. You need anything?" I asked her.

Silence followed for a few moments. I was starting to wonder if she had hung up on me, when she stammered, "E-er, w-well, you see…"

I sighed impatiently, not trying to be rude, but seriously tired, I repeated, "Hey, if you have something to say, just say it. I'm not the Emperor of Japan, ok?"

And as I had hoped, it seemed to lift her spirits. She giggled, and I could hear her shaking laughter from this side of the phone. I smiled; she was really easily amused. After controlling her giggles, she said, "Ryoma-kun, are you free this Sunday?"

* * *

Sakuno POV

YATTA! I DID IT! I ASKED RYOMA-KUN OUT!

The problem was, now, he wasn't replying. I started to panic. He was probably disgusted with me now! Oh no! I shouldn't have asked! EEEK!

"Ah, Ryoma-kun? Forget what I sa—"

"Yeah, I'm free." He interrupted me quickly. "Do you want to go somewhere?"

I slowly took the phone away from my face and gaped at it. Hold on just a minute here!

Did Ryoma just ask ME out? I can't believe it! O. M. G!

"Oi, Sakuno!" I gasped at the familiar way Ryoma-kun called me.

"Y-yes?" I replied shakily.

"How about the amusement park?" He asked casually. Although it's probably not true, I swear I felt his embarrassment through the phone. Is this what people call the connection between lovers?

I poked myself. Ryoma-kun's not even my boyfriend. I shook my head. Oh well…

"Yeah, why not?" I replied.

"Sounds good then. So, I'll pick you up on Sunday at the station at 10?"

"Ok."

An awkward silence ensued, neither one of us knowing what to say or do now.

* * *

Regular POV

Ryoma broke the silence, knowing that Sakuno probably still had a lot of things to do as her grandma was in America for a tennis conference.

"Hey, Sakuno. Since you probably have a lot of stuff to do, I'll just—"

"No!"

"Eh?" Ryoma was surprised.

"Oh! Er, no, that, well…Could you stay on the phone with me tonight? Obaa-chan's out, and I'm kind of lonely…" Sakuno said shyly, her entire face was red at this point.

"All right, then." Ryoma had a smirk-smile combination on his face. "I'll stay."

So, for the entire night, while each of them did their respective necessary activities, they talked about everything and anything, comfortable with each other's presences over the phone.

Sakuno lost her stutter and began joking with Ryoma, as Ryoma also let go of any coldness and couldn't help but smile from time to time as Sakuno said the punch line to some ridiculous riddle.

But finally, it was time to go to sleep. At 11 at night, both of them knew Ryoma had to wake up early for the final inter-ranking matches, and Sakuno was going to come watch anyways, so both would have to sleep early.

**I hung up the phone tonight**

**Something happened for the first time**

**Deep inside it was a rush, what a rush…**

Sakuno said, "Hey, Ryoma-kun? You have your last matches tomorrow right?"

Ryoma nodded, even though he knew she couldn't see him. "Yeah, it should be fun." _As if. Going against Fuji-sempai is anything BUT that, and playing Inui-sempai is just annoying._

Sakuno smiled, feeling Ryoma's annoyance waves through their phone connection. "Well, I'll be coming to cheer for you, so do your best ok? Ganbatte!"

Ryoma blushed. He knew; he KNEW this was not the first time Sakuno was going to watch him, but now knowing that he liked her and the possibility of a relationship, his face was going to explode sometimes soon. "A-ah, it'll be easy." He added nonchalantly, trying not to give away the fact that he was nervous, too.

'**Cause the possibility**

**That you would ever feel the same way **

**About me, just too much, just too much…**

"I know you'll do well. I believe in you." Sakuno added quietly. (A/N: YEAHHHH! GO SAKUNO! Yes, I know she's braver and very OOC, but I'm sorry! Don't kill me! ^_^)

Ryoma's head did a volcano burst, steam flowing out his ears like a train, his heart pounding against his ribcage. "Y-yeah! I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Jaa ne." Sakuno said goodbye, and the two hung up.

Both of them plopped into bed, but couldn't fall asleep now. _Wow, I'm so happy. That's the longest and most fun conversation I've ever had! _

Sakuno pulled her i-Pod from her jacket and plugged the earphones into her ears, trying to get some music to calm herself down and sleep.

Ryoma turned on the very mini radio on his nightstand at minimal volume, just trying to find a tune to lull himself to sleep.

As luck would have it, both found the same song, the one and only…

CRUSH

Hey you guys!

So just a recap, please read AND review!

Also, I need feedback! Things might get confusing from here on out, and I'll really need your guys' help to make sure it doesn't, especially because I'll be incorporating Crush, by David Archuleta.

I love you all, and GO PRINCE OF TENNIS! RyoSaku, forevaaa!

~Hime-chan, with love to all and a bonus big bear hug to all my reviewers!

* * *

Mini-translation corner:

~tachi: more than one, a group of people (i.e. senpai-tachi refers to Ryoma's group of senpai)

oyaji: father, but a ruder, more casual way of saying it

oi: hey

yatta: I did it! Yes! etc etc etc.

jaa ne: see you later (very casual, between friends)


	4. IV: Revelations

Hey all!

Sorry for the long wait. お待たせしました！

Hime-chan here again, back to give you the newest update on "Crush!"

Just curious: do you guys like the direction of the story? I honestly need to hear from my lovely readers whether you want fluff or an actual story (i.e. conflict)! Reviews or PMs are always welcome (as well as story alerts, favoriting, etc.)! (Btw, I'm not going to mention this anymore, but bolded words will always be song lyrics)

So please, enjoy this new chapter and please please PLEASE review!

Disclaimer: none of the Prince of Tennis characters or Crush (the song) belongs to me. They belong to Takeshi Konomi-sensei and David Archuleta and his producing company, respectively.

* * *

Crush:

Chapter 4:

-The next day, about 11:00 AM-

Regular POV

The last match of the day: Ryoma was poised at the baseline, eyes narrowed, muscles tensed…Trying his best to focus on the second most difficult opponent: Fuji Syusuke, renowned genius and the Angel from Hell of Seigaku Tennis Team.

On normal days, our young prince would be 100% concentrated on the close-eyed _tensai_ across from him. Yet, while his body was prepared, his mind was anything but focused.

"I'm starting, Echizen," Fuji called.

Ryoma simply nodded, a little absentmindedly. His opponent raised his eyebrows in surprise. "_Something's wrong_." A thought flashed through the genius' mind, and he grinned evilly.

**Now** Ryoma was paying attention. For his Fuji-senpai to open his eyes and grin so sinisterly right at him were two very, VERY bad signs.

The upperclassmen served a normal ball, and the match was off. Everyone, including the other regulars stood outside the fence, interested to see how these two legendary figures would do. Or it could end up like it did four years ago: lightning and rain and a complete cancellation. (Ryoma and Sakuno are in their first year of high school right now. She's liked him in this story since 2nd year of middle school.)

But nope—no lightning and no rain. The match continued, 15 minutes, then half an hour. And boy, was everyone surprised by the results half-way through the second set. 6-2, 3-3. (Anyone want to give a shot at who's got what score?)

Yup, that's right. 6 Fuji, 2 Echizen for the first set. 3-all in the second set.

As usual, Tomoka was there to give her support, although not in the usual ridiculously skimpy cheerleading attire. "Go Ryoma-sama!" she screamed.

He ignored her. As usual. But someone wasn't there. Not as usual.

"_Sakuno_…"

"Game! Fuji!"

"Shoot." Echizen pinched himself for being so distracted. While making a last effort to spy Sakuno, he made eye contact with Tezuka. The stoic captain was staring at him blankly, careful not to reveal any emotion, as usual. Yet Ryoma looked away, afraid of what Tezuka would say later about his performance.

As for the rest of the regulars, at this point, they had all figured out something was weird about the youngest member of the team. But all they could do was cheer him on as much as possible.

"Echizen, you had better win!" (Kaidoh) "Yeah, come on!" (Momoshiro)

"BURNNNINNNG!" "You're giving me really bad data, Echizen…" (A/N: Does that even count as cheering? Well, in any case, that was Kawamura and Inui)

"Ganbare, Ochibi-chan!" (Eiji)

"You can do this, Echizen!" (Oishi)

"…" (Tezuka) (A/N: LOLZ…)

Amongst the crowd of voices, Ryoma aurally strained to find her. "_Where is she?"_

He served.

"Fault!"

_Crap_. He threw the ball up into the air again, and as it was falling…

"Fight-o, Ryoma-kun!" Sakuno's voice rang out through the court.

He smirked, and brought his racket smashing down.

"15-Love!"

* * *

Sakuno POV (a few minutes before)

I hummed happily as I chopped quickly and arranged the sushi. "I hope obaa-chan will appreciate me cooking dinner today." I smiled.

"Yosh! Time to—" I glanced at the clock, then stopped dead.

"…SHOOT!"

(About 60 seconds later…)

I grabbed what I needed and dashed out the door. Dinner would have to wait.

* * *

Ryoma POV (back to present)

"She's here." I thought, relieved. While landing back down after a Cyclone Smash (A/N: anime only I think), I glanced quickly out of the corner of my eye and had to cover my grin.

Panting, with her hands on her knees, Sakuno's hair was kind of all over the place with the wind and what not. I could tell that she had rushed here.

But then again, she had promised to watch. Why's she so late? I was pretty puzzled, but she was here. That was all I needed.

"Game, Echizen."

15 minutes later…

"Game and match, Echizen Ryoma!"

I walked to the net to shake Fuji-senpai's hand. He nodded, smiling as usual. But he knows something—something was odd about how wide his grin was.

"Good work, Echizen."

"You too, Fuji-senpai." After that, I immediately strolled over to the fence door.

Sakuno jumped on me, "Congrats Ryoma-kun!"

I was shocked by the feel of her arms locked around my neck. When did this girl become so confident?

"Th-thanks," I tried to hide my surprise, but I think she noticed my stiffness, because she (regrettably, for me) detached herself from me and immediately began apologizing, bowing over 90 degrees. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry Ryoma-kun!"

"No problem," I lied. _Of course_ _there's a problem, I feel like my face is on fire!_

She beamed, though slightly embarrassed, "Here. Omedetou."

I glanced at the bento box in my hands. Something clicked finally.

"Were you late making this?" I asked, trying to keep the joy in my voice down.

"Y-yeah, sorry. I kind of went overboard, and—well I rushed here as fast as I could, and then I made it, but you were almost don—"

I shushed her. "It's fine. You're here, that's enough." And I subsequently wanted to punch myself. That's so mushy!

I glanced at Sakuno's face. The silly girl, her entire head had become the color of a tomato. _Guess that means I said something pretty good to elicit that reaction_.

She stuttered, "T-try the b-bento, Ryoma-kun."

"_Un_," I agreed. I sat down on the grass, handing the box delicately, like it was a treasure…because it was. Compared to the bento from four years ago, where I apparently broke Sakuno's heart (I heard from the senpai-tachi), this one meant so much more to me.

She stood next to me awkwardly, slightly shifting her feet, unsure of what to do.

I looked up at her and smirked like usual. I patted a dry and soft patch of grass next to me. "Sit with me." I ordered as gently as possible. She plopped down gracefully, and I turned to the box in question.

To be honest, I had to restrain myself to untie the handkerchief holding the box together slowly, as I was eager to see exactly what had taken so long.

And boy was I amazed. The box had four wooden layers, each with a certain theme: appetizers, small entrée, main, and dessert.

The top: appetizers. She had set up a western style lettuce salad, spelling out my name "R-Y-O-M-A" in thin carrot slivers. On the side, there was a little plastic container of a slight pink, brownish sauce.

I turned back to my companion. Sakuno was staring at me intently, probably trying to decipher what my silence indicated. "Can I start?" I asked.

She nodded silently, making a hand gesture to begin.

"Ok then. Itadakimasu!" And I partook in the salad, making sure to use the sauce I've never seen before.

"How…is it?" Sakuno ventured.

I faced her. "Sakuno, you're a cooking genius!"

She shook her head. "No way, you're exaggerating. It's probably horrible, so you're lying to make me feel better." She turned her head the other way.

I continued eating, finishing it in 5 minutes flat, then tapped her on the shoulder because she had not moved from the position of facing away from me.

"Hey, look." I showed her the empty layer. She smiled forcedly. "How was it?"

"Like I said, it's great! Except…"

"Except?" Sakuno panicked slightly now, eyes wide.

"I'm curious. Where did that salad sauce come from?"

Silence followed my question. Sakuno had turned away again in embarrassment.

I poked her gently. "Sakuno?"

"It's that bad…huh?"

"…Wait. What?"

"I made it." She twisted her entire body opposite and away from me, having completely misinterpreted what my question's intention was.

I almost slapped myself. Of course, considering her humility, she would take it that way. I forcefully turned her back to me. "Sakuno, listen."

Her eyes focused on the ground still, but it was better than nothing. "Sakuno. That sauce was the best I've ever tasted."

"You're lying."

"No."

Sakuno looked up in surprise at the conviction in my voice.

"It's the best I've ever tasted. I've never tasted anything like it, and that's why I wanted to ask. Now that you've clarified so, I've confirmed that you're a cooking genius. Seriously."

She smiled shyly. "Thanks."

I lifted the first layer off to proceed to the next level of food. And I swear to God that Sakuno has got to be the youngest prodigy chef in the world.

In the second layer, there were three sets of things: a small brownish seaweed salad, onigiri, and several nigirizushi (those are the ones with a slice of fish and a lump of elongated rice at the bottom). There was also a tennis racket shaped lump of wasabi. :)

The awesome thing was that together, they formed a picture of my face. Sakuno had realistically depicted my cap with onigiri, my eyes with the seaweed, and my facial features with the nigirizushi. I finished that quickly, too, all the while extremely amused at her creativity in creating this masterpiece and at her extremely red face while I polished the second layer off.

The third layer was a oyakodon (chicken-egg-rice). The theme in this one was a tennis ball, an edible replica of the balls Sakuno had given to me as tokens of her support—I still have them I think.

The oyakodon was special though, in the fact that instead of having the usual eggs just randomly placed on the rice, Sakuno had neatly piled them into a slight hemispheric shape, and then had placed two crepe-thin omelets on them. The first had the design of the first ball she gave me, a cartoon me. I peeled that one away, and the second was the writing, of "No. 1 in Nationals."

Here, I munched thoughtfully. So I was halfway through the third layer and I was assuming, at this point, that Sakuno had made this for me because she liked me. However, I wanted a confirmation, or I'd never have been able to sleep again.

**Why do I keep running from the truth?**

**All I ever think about is you**

**You got me hypnotized, so mesmerized**

**And I just got to know…**

"_I'll ask_." Gathering up my courage, I slowly lifted the third layer off, all the while, trying to phrase my question eloquently.

"Hey, Sakuno, do you—" I stopped there. Because what greeted my eyes in the fourth layer told me everything I needed to know.

Sakuno had used mochi and chocolate in the fourth layer: dessert. Having shaped many glutinous rice cakes and different types of chocolate into logs, she had arranged them into the following: 好きだよ、リョーマくん。(Ryoma-kun, I love you)

I looked at her. "Sakuno, you—"

**Cause the possibility**

**That you would ever feel the same way**

**About me, just too much, just too much**

She twiddled her thumbs. "I know you might not like me, but I hope you can try, just try…" Her voice died off.

And I thought _I_ was afraid of rejection. "Sakuno. Look at me." She lifted her face to glance shyly at me.

I took a final look at the growing woman in front of me. Her hair cascading down her back and shoulders, big innocent eyes, and warm smile would work to bring a grin on my face for the rest of my life—is what I thought to myself.

"Sakuno. Listen well. I'm going to say this once, so it's not my fault if you miss it."

She nodded apprehensively.

I took in a big breath. "I love you, Ryuuzaki Sakuno."

* * *

Sakuno POV

_EHHHHHH?_

"Uh, uh, I—"

"You are the only person who has never blatantly expressed your emotions to me, and I find it hard to decipher you. Yet, your smile, your words, your voice—all are essential to me."

**Do you ever think when you're all alone**

**All that we can be, where this thing can go?**

**Am I crazy or falling in love?**

**Is it really just another crush?**

I was staggered. Was this Ryoma-kun? If it was, I definitely do not regret loving him.

Ryoma continued, "Sakuno, will you be my girlfriend?"

I felt like I had just been proposed to! What do I do?

"Um…" I started off.

While I was considering how to phrase my answer, out of nowhere…

* * *

Ryoma POV

Out of nowhere, I heard cries and voices.

"ECHIZEN!"

"RYUUZAKI-CHAN!"

Sakuno and I simultaneously turned towards the voices. And simultaneously turned red.

Because, yup you guessed it, the older regulars were _all_ there, grinning from ear to ear, plus Fuji-senpai with his trusty camera and Inui-senpai with his partner a.k.a. his notebook.

…And when I say all, I mean all. Yes, including Tezuka-buchou.

I groaned. Please don't tell me they heard all of that.

But yes they did. Momo-senpai jumped out ahead and screamed, "Ryuuzaki-san, say YES!"

The rest of the regulars echoed him, with Fuji-senpai adding, "Wow, Echizen, I didn't know you had it in you."

Tezuka-buchou simply stared at me, then with a gentler gaze, looked to Sakuno and said politely, but firmly, "Ryuuzaki-san, if you like Echizen back, say yes."

Subsequently, everyone's eyes, including my pleading ones, turned to Sakuno. She pondered quietly for several moments, and then blushing, said something.

I sucked in my breath. "Wait, what?"

"Yes." She repeated.

"YATTA!" I cried out, picking her up and swinging her around. She giggled gleefully in her melodic voice while her hair rippled in the wind.

**See it's a chance we've gotta take**

'**Cause I believe that we can make this into**

**Something that will last, last forever, forever!**

Everyone else began cheering as well, with all the regulars crowding around my new girlfriend and I when I pulled her back down to earth with me.

Eventually, they began concentrating on Sakuno, slightly ignoring me. Seizing the chance, Tezuka-buchou made eye contact with me, gesturing slightly with a jerk of his neck to come talk to him outside of the mob.

We walked over to a quieter place where we could speak privately, but I could still keep an eye on Sakuno. Initially, the two of us stood there silently, me not knowing what to say, and buchou simply choosing not to say anything.

Finally, he spoke up. "Take good care of her," he said seriously, even more so than usual.

I raised a questioning eyebrow, silently asking what brought this around. What relationship did he have with her that he would say that?

He looked over at her, and I was immediately surprised. His eyes were extremely kind, and he had a gentle smile on his face.

I waited as patiently as I could. He continued to observe her, as I did, too; our eyes followed her every movement, took in every blush, grin, and giggle. After a while, Tezuka-buchou turned to me and said this: "No one knows this except Sakuno's grandmother. I hope you can keep this a secret."

Now I was really confused. "Obaa-san does?…Sure, I will."

He sighed. This was the most emotional I've ever seen him.

Several silent moments passed, an awkward quietness.

Finally, he revealed what he had been hiding all along.

"I'm Sakuno's brother."

* * *

**Japanese Mini-Translator Corner:**  
tensai = genius  
Yosh! = all right!  
Omedetou = congratulations!  
Yatta! = I did it! / Hooray! / All right!  
Obaa-san = old lady / grandmother

* * *

YAY A CLIFFHANGER!

Lol, sorry you guys but that's where I'm leaving it. Don't kill me. xD

Yes, I know that Tezuka is definitely not her brother in the anime OR manga, but this is my story and this is how I'm planning for it to go. And YES I do know Ryoma is SUPER OOC.

That's where YOU GUYS come in! If you want fluff, just write a quick review saying "fluff" and if you want a story conflict, just write "conflict" or something so I know what the majority of my readers want!

Otherwise, I don't know what to do! Although this story sucks anyways, I hope you guys can give me at least a little feedback on how I've been doing and if you like it or not. Just one sentence is good. Seriously, please?

But I love you all, and a huge bear hug for MadBlossomingPrincess. Thank you dear!

~Hime-chan, over and out.


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